Memo from Mayo 3 September 2019
Welcome to an exciting edition of our Memo from Mayo where I am pleased to announce that I and my Centre Alliance colleagues Senators Stirling Griff and Rex Patrick have successfully secured $2.77 million in much-needed funding for sporting infrastructure in Mayo including:
- $2 million to finish Stage 1 of the Mount Barker Regional Sports Hub;
- $550,000 has been committed to upgrading facilities at the Encounter Bay Sports Complex;
- Summertown Community Centre has received $130,000 to build a new toilet block for both the public and local sporting clubs to use;
- $60,000 has been granted to Mount Compass Community Sports & Social Club so it can finally address an urgent council directive to meet new fire safety standards;
- Clarendon Netball Club can now lock up their equipment in a secure shelter thanks to a $30,000 grant.
This funding commitment by the Federal Government through the Community Development Grants Programme is wonderful news. We want an active and connected community and sport plays an important role in building healthy and happy communities.
But rest assured sport is not the only sector in our community that I am advocating for with Centre Alliance lobbying for better health services; upgraded road and transport infrastructure (including an upgraded freeway interchange at Verdun and more overtaking lanes on the Victor Harbor Road); and support for our farming industry, our local environment and our community organisations.
$80M for Cancer Institute
South Australia’s growing international reputation as a centre of medical research excellence took a significant step forward recently with the announcement that a world-class biomedical research facility would be developed in Adelaide.
The Federal Government announced it will invest $80 million to develop the South Australian immunoGENomics (SAiGEN) Cancer Institute in the heart of Adelaide’s medical research hub on North Terrace.
SAiGEN is the result of lobbying by Centre Alliance Senator Stirling Griff, and will provide new, more effective and curative approaches to diagnosing and treating cancer.
You can read more about SAiGEN here.
$2M for Mount Barker Regional Sports Hub
Photo: Federal Member for Mayo Rebekha Sharkie, left, and Mount Barker Mayor Ann Ferguson on the site of the Mount Barker Sports Hub.
Rebekha has welcomed the announcement of an extra $2 million to finish off Stage 1 of the Mount Barker Regional Sports Hub worth just over $23 million.
The money, secured by Centre Alliance in recent months, will add to the $8 million pledged by the Federal Government in 2018; the $8.15 million contribution from the Mount Barker District Council; $3.775 million from the State Government and $300,000 from peak sporting bodies.
It means the Council now has the full amount required to build an oval for AFL football and cricket with changerooms and lighting, two synthetic soccer pitches with change rooms and lighting, storage sheds and other infrastructure such as parking, fencing, stormwater and landscaping.
“With the population of the Mount Barker district expected to grow from around 34,000 to 55,416 by 2036, we need to meet the demand for recreational facilities as well as upgrading our road networks and waste water facilities,” Rebekha said.
You can read more about the project here.
$550,000 upgrade for Encounter Bay Football
Photo: Federal Member for Mayo Rebekha Sharkie, left, discusses the planned extension of the facilities for the Encounter Bay Football Club and affiliated netball and cricket clubs with Steering Committee Members Ray Clarke and Don Rumbelow and Club President Cameron Hallett, right.
Rebekha has welcomed the announcement of a $550,000 grant from the Community Development Grants Programme to upgrade the Encounter Bay Football Club’s clubrooms and change rooms.
The funding, secured through the advocacy of the Centre Alliance MP, will help the club upgrade the existing change rooms and build SANFL-compliant amenities for female players and umpires.
The grant will also enable the club to extend its clubrooms, kitchen and canteen facilities and make them compliant to disability access requirements as well as upgrading the fire water supply, fire hydrant and fire hose reels to new national standards. You can read more here.
New facilities at Summertown
Photo: Summertown Netball Club President Hanna Heptinstall, left, invited the Federal Member for Mayo, Rebekha Sharkie, to a recent game to show her the community centre facilities.
A grant for $130,000 to build a much-needed toilet block on Tregarthen Reserve at Summertown has been welcomed by Rebekha.
The funding will enable the Summertown Community Centre to replace the circa 1970s public facilities with toilets that meet modern standards. You can read more here.
Fire safety upgrades at Mount Compass
Photo: Mount Compass Community Sports & Social Club President Perrin Hicks, left, club secretary Hannah Stone and committee member Tom Edwards recently showed Federal Member for Mayo Rebekha Sharkie the straw thatched ceiling that must be replaced to meet fire safety standards.
Mount Compass Community Sports & Social Club can finally address an urgent council directive to meet new fire safety standards thanks to a $60,000 grant from the Federal Government.
The grant, announced this week thanks to the advocacy of Rebekha, means the club can now replace the old straw thatched ceiling inside their main building and install water tanks, a fire hydrant and pipework for CFS use.
“This is fantastic news for a small but vibrant community group faced with a massive bill to make their facilities meet modern fire standards,” Rebekha said this week.
You can read more here.
New shed for Clarendon Netball Club
Photo: Federal Member for Mayo Rebekha Sharkie, third from right, was recently shown the facilities at Clarendon Netball Club’s base by members Brianna Dowding, left, Mackenzie Steer, Natalie Perkins, Kyiesha Gee, Chris Rose, and Kaitlyn Millhouse.
Clarendon Netball Club can now lock up their equipment in a secure shelter thanks to a $30,000 grant advocated for by Rebekha.
The Community Development Grants Programme funding will allow the club to build a purpose-built shed and permanent barbecue shelter to cater for the needs of the 150-member club.
You can read more here.
NBN information session
More than 30 residents attended a National Broadband Network (NBN) information session at Inglewood last week hosted by Rebekha.
“It was a great turnout for a cold winter’s evening and demonstrated the depth of the community interest in the NBN and accessing reliable internet more generally,” said Rebekha.
You can read more here.
Three other NBN information sessions are planned at Lenswood on September 25, Mylor on October 30, and Meadows on November 6. More details here.
